Ishan Pandey became the 44th player to represent Nepal men's team in One Day Internationals after being named in the playing XI against the United States in the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup League 2 match in Kirtipur.
The United States won the toss and elected to bat first at TU International Cricket Ground, with Nepal handing Ishan his ODI debut after a strong run of form for Nepal A and in domestic cricket.
Ishan came into the squad for the ongoing League 2 series against the USA and Scotland after replacing Basir Ahamad in Nepal's 15-member group. His inclusion in the XI now completes a return to the national setup in a new format.
The left-handed batter had previously represented Nepal in T20Is in 2019, when he opened alongside then-captain Paras Khadka. He played four T20Is for Nepal before working his way back through domestic cricket and Nepal A performances.
His recent form made a strong case for selection. Ishan scored a half-century for Nepal A against Scotland and also made fifties in both practice matches against Oman. In domestic cricket, he scored 331 runs in six innings in the Jay Trophy with three half-centuries and followed that with 286 runs in nine PM Cup matches.
Nepal have gone into the match with Rohit Paudel as captain and Dipendra Singh Airee as vice-captain. Aasif Sheikh keeps wicket, while Kushal Bhurtel, Aarif Sheikh, Gulsan Jha, Sompal Kami, Nandan Yadav, Lalit Rajbanshi and Sandeep Lamichhane are also in the XI.
The match is an important one for Nepal's League 2 campaign, with the home side looking to bounce back after the narrow defeat to Scotland earlier in the series.
Nepal Playing XI
Rohit Paudel (c), Dipendra Singh Airee (vc), Aasif Sheikh (wk), Kushal Bhurtel, Ishan Pandey, Aarif Sheikh, Gulsan Jha, Sompal Kami, Nandan Yadav, Lalit Rajbanshi, Sandeep Lamichhane
